Friday, January 11, 2013

The High Cost of Cannabis Prohibition

Regardless of your opinion of cannabis per se, have a look at these (referenced) statistics and admit that cannabis prohibition is counter-productive at best, futile and destructive at worst.

* 50,800, 147,800, 204,500 and 385,000 - The estimated number of daily, weekly, monthly and yearly cannabis users in New Zealand, respectively. As a proportion of the population aged 16-64, this represents 1.9, 5.6, 7.8 and 14.6 percent respectively. Source: Ministry of Health Drug Use in New Zealand v.2 Jan 2010, pg. 47.

* 453,746 - Kilograms of cannabis seized by police and customs between 2000 and 2006. Source: Law Commission Controlling and Regulating Drugs Discussion Document, pg. 40. This is a daily average of over 207 kg. Assuming all this seized cannabis was sold at $300/ounce, the estimated annual retail market for this cannabis alone would be worth $810 million.

* 20% - Proportion of regular drug users who have bought cannabis off a gang member or associate in the last 12 months. 74 percent had got their fix from a friend, 45 percent from a dealer, and 18 percent from a family member or their partner. Source: SHORE Illicit Drug Monitoring System 2011, pg. 174.

* $20 - The mean price for a tinnie (1.5 grams cannabis). The price
has proven inflation-resistant for over a decade. The mean price of an
ounce has risen slowly to around $330, although the Wellington mean
remains around $300 an ounce. The price for a pound of cannabis remains stable at $3000. Source: SHORE Illicit Drug Monitoring System 2011, pp. 161-2.